Recently crowned 'Female Artist of the Year' for the second time at the Classic BRITs, Alison Balsom has cemented an international reputation as one of classical music's great ambassadors and is ranked among the most distinctive and ground-breaking musicians on the international circuit today. Balsom has also been honoured with numerous awards by Classic FM, Gramophone and Echo Klassik.
September 2009 saw Balsom headline one of classical music's most celebrated concerts - The Last Night of the BBC Proms - which reached its biggest ever global television audience of an estimated 200 million. In December 2010 Balsom went on to make her US television debut with the Orchestra of St Luke's on The Late Show with David Letterman - a platform few classical artists have gained access to.
Balsom's highly distinctive sound earned her much recognition in her early career when she mainly reached her audience through radio broadcasts under the auspices of the BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists scheme. While represented by the Young Concert Artists Trust, Balsom caught the ear of EMI Classics with whom she records exclusively. Her internationally celebrated Bach Trumpet and Organ disc of 2005 was quickly followed by 'Caprice' which won her further critical acclaim. Balsom’s latest release, 'Italian Concertos', which became EMI Classics biggest selling album of 2010, includes her own arrangements of Italian Baroque Concertos, originally written for violin and oboe.
Balsom studied trumpet at the Guildhall School of Music, the Paris Conservatoire, and with Håkan Hardenberger. She was previously a member of the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester and the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. Balsom was a concerto finalist in the BBC Young Musician competition in 1998 and received the Feeling Musique Prize for quality of sound in the 4th Maurice André International Trumpet Competition. She is Visiting Professor of Trumpet to the Guildhall School of Music. Balsom performs a wide range of recital and concerto repertoire, from Albinoni to Zimmermann and performs on both modern and baroque trumpets.
The 2011/12 season sees Balsom return to China to perform with Lorin Maazel and the National Symphony Orchestra in the nationally televised New Year Gala event in Beijing. She will also perform with Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, Wiener Symphoniker, Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Further ahead, Balsom will embark on major international tours with I Musici di Roma, the Scottish Ensemble, Kremerata Baltica, Kammerorchesterbasel and Concerto Köln.
